British Pornography Traffic Falls After Age Verifications, But Virtual Private Network Use Surges, Reports Watchdog
Visitor numbers to pornography websites in the UK has decreased markedly since the enforcement of age-checking measures earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications watchdog. Simultaneously, the use of specialist software designed to dodge these blocks has surged.
Immediate Fall in Visitor Figures Following Rule Implementation
The introduction of age verification on 25 July caused an prompt fall in visits to major pornography sites, such as the top site in the UK. Data indicates that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.
Overall, traffic to the 10 top adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a “lower level” than before the late July implementation date. Later analysis shows this decline in viewing persisted past August.
Sharp Increase in VPN Usage to Bypass Restrictions
Reacting to the new rules, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can get around geographic restrictions by masking connections through another country—more than doubled following 25 July.
Usage reached a high at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, up from around 650,000 users before the checks began. Subsequently, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since steadily declined, with current numbers at around 900,000. It added that the volume of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography services.
Young People Taking Action to Damaging Material
Elsewhere, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering distressing content online. Steps taken included flagging the content to the platform to muting the user who posted it.
This survey was conducted before new rules took effect that require social media companies to stop children from accessing harmful content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way teenagers encountered such content was by scrolling through a platform feed, suggesting that algorithms were serving harmful material.
Government Launch Review of Pornography Laws
In a related development, the ministers stated it would review the legislation relating to pornography to assess whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern digital age.
“The review will look into the efficacy of the current law in relation to criminalising, among other things, damaging depictions of incest and any types of pornography which encourage the abuse of children,” said a justice minister.
Campaigners Push For Stricter Digital Controls
Advocates for tighter regulation of adult content have urged the government to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by using young-looking performers dressed as children.
Proposed amendments to government bills aim to:
- Ban pornography where adults are impersonating children, often recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the offence of creating an indecent image of a child to include material where an adult plays the role of a child.
- Introduce stricter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is often promoted by platform systems.
- Introduce further restrictions on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own tools designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
- Establish a new, separate oversight agency to conduct inspections on pornography sites and respond to complaints of unlawful content.
The advocates argue that these measures would ensure the protections that have existed for decades in the physical world finally apply to the online sphere.
